Goddess of the Moon
by Boxed Princess
Summary: Shadow, known as the boy who stopped time, comes from the past to protect Selene, a younger hedgehog who has no positive outlook on her life. After learning about her fate, Selene must be by him to protect him and the world. Prequel to Flowers of the Moonlight. R&R Please!
1. Chapter 1 - Jump

Goddess of the Moon

By Boxed Princess

Chapter 1

 _The silver hedgehog stood under the moon, her black hair shining vividly and her dark blue irises capturing the liquid moonlight of the great satellite above in the heavens. She could feel her spirit lift up from the ground as she, with her telepathic powers, floated upwards, smiling. She rarely smiled and for once she could feel all the pain in her chest and mind go away. She was finally free._

* * *

Selene had woken up from her dream. She felt an ambience in her surroundings. The female hedgehog got up and grabbed her bag to go to school, which she dreaded. She often found herself lost in thought as she entered the school, her dark eyes empty and lifeless. She was always seen as the ghost girl, and everyone would avoid her. A frown was on her lips as she entered her class.

"Come on, Selene, maybe if you tried harder you'd actually be liked by people!" her sister, Aurora, would remind her on a daily basis. It would drive Selene mad, as her ears would lower and she'd just roll her eyes but not say anything. In general, she would not say much to anyone except to herself.

Selene finally got through her classes and she walked out by herself. She took another way home, unlike the usual route. Poor Selene always walked by herself, since her sister always had her popular friends by her side. The tall skyscrapers always overwhelmed the hedgehog, and she had to get away from it. She walked through a few streets until she reached one of the larger bridges of Central City. She walked up the railing and looked down, seeing the large amount of water below. "If I just jumped, I'd die like that," she whispered to herself, leaning forward and gazing down. "From this height, it's like hitting concrete." Selene's lower lip quivered as she inched forward. "No one would even care if I was gone…" she whispered. "Nobody knows that I exist in first place…"

Selene climbed over the safety railing and stood on the edge, one of her hands holding onto the edge. She glared down, her eyes widening. _I might just follow through this time…_

"What are you doing?" A dark voice called out for her and Selene's ears flicked toward the direction of the origin of the voice. A black hedgehog with red stripes stood, his arms crossed, a serious expression on his face. "Why do you want to be dead?"

"I'm already dead," Selene said emotionlessly. "I've been dead for many years," she whispered, inching forward and feeling tears drip down her cheeks. "Just leave me alone…" She then moved forward, getting ready to let go, before a hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her back over.

"I can't let you do that," he said simply, and without her consent he had grabbed her by the waist and pulled her over. The dark hedgehog felt a slap go across his face, followed by a red mark. "You're a bit feisty, aren't you?" he growled, setting her down. "Selene, I can't let you kill yourself."

"How do you know my name?!" Selene yelled, beginning to panic and looked over the rail again, but then her face was grabbed by the dark hedgehog. "Please…let me just die…" she said, falling to her knees and then covering her face. The dark hedgehog too went onto one knee.

"You go to the same school as I do," he answered. "I'm Shadow." He then moved a hand to her shoulder and noticed her shaking. "Selene…I have to protect you," he said. "There is a future ahead of you that is nearly unavoidable. It leads to darkness, and if I let that happen, the world can possibly be destroyed…" he said in a calm manner.

"What?!"

"It's complicated," he replied, lifting her up to her feet again. "Come, I'll bring you home," he said, offering his hand but avoiding eye contact with her. "Just trust me on this," he whispers, then smirked a bit, which was out of character of him. "How fast can you run?" he asked her.

"Not that fast…" Selene mumbled.

"Then you'll just have to sprint." Shadow took Selene's hand and sprinted forward, going at an extremely fast pace in which Selene had to almost hop to catch up to him. As soon as they arrived back at the Phoenicia Mansion, Shadow stayed in the dark. "I know you're feeling suicidal," he said. "But…just do me a favor…" he said. "I know you don't know me well but just wait until prom, please…" he asked. "I want you to go with me."

Selene's cheeks brushed red. "Sh-shadow!" she stuttered, then felt a smile cross her lips. "Will do!" she said, then turned away. "By the way, it's best if we aren't seen together," she said. "My parents are really protective of me." Selene waved bye to him and as soon as she turned around, a huge smile was on her lips. She didn't feel like a ghost anymore…someone noticed her!


	2. Chapter 2 - What is this new power?

**Chapter 2**

Selene could not sleep on the night of that eventful day. So much had happened that it was even difficult for her to eat. She let out a sigh and then pressed her face into her soft pillow. "Why would someone like me?" she asked herself. "I'm not even that good-looking…" she mumbled, then gazed out at the moon. Somehow, she felt a strange nostalgic feeling flow through her. Selene got up and opened the window, sitting on the ledge and feeling the moonlight hit her skin. It was almost like the sun for her – she could not live without it. The moon had given her hope, as it was like her. Dark, mysterious, and its own beauty could only be seen by a few.

She breathed out and then walked out onto the roof of the mansion she lived in, sitting at the edge. If her mother found her like this, she would usually scold her and such, but it felt right to be outside at this moment.

"Hey."

The voice made Selene jump and she turned and looked down to see the black and red hedgehog from earlier standing there. "H-hello," Selene whispered, making sure she would not wake anyone up. "Do you need help getting up here?" she called out, getting on her knees and inched towards the edge that faced Shadow. Shadow just shrugged and jumped up, grabbing onto the vines and pulling himself up.

"Sorry to scare you at this hour of the night, but I believe that we need a proper introduction besides just names." Shadow sat down next to Selene and kicked one leg over the other. "As you already know, I'm Shadow, and it was my fate to meet you," he said. The dark hedgehog scooted over. "A mysterious being wants your lineage to be destroyed," Shadow notified. "I came here to protect you from that mysterious evil being."

"But why me?" Selene was alarmed and she scooted over uncomfortably. "I'm just a nobody…nobody likes me, nobody knows I exist, I'm just a stupid ghost girl…" she said.

Shadow rested a hand on her shoulder. "Rest assured, there are many people that care about you," he said in his deep voice. "I, for one, do." This caused Selene's cheeks to turn pink. "And I know we just met but I have done some time travelling, for one," he said.

"Huh?" Selene pondered. Those were the only words that came to mind. "Wh-what was that?" she questioned, looking over at Shadow, who's half-lidded crimson eyes gazed into her dark blue ones.

"Selene, you have more power than you think," he said. "For one, if someone cares for you makes any sort of physical contact with you, you get memories from the future. Along with that, you have telekinesis. Meaning you can move things with your mind."

"So that's why I keep floating in my dreams…" she noted, then looked over and kicked her feet over the edge. "Shadow…" she said. "I want to run away with you. Leave Central City behind. Go somewhere far away. Start a new life there. You're my only friend and I want to do that with you."

"Here," he said, moving his hands over hers.

 _The two hedgehogs sprinted for a motor bike. Helicopters were specked in the sky as lights were on the ground searching for the two._

"I don't want to spoil too much for you," he said. "But it's destined to happen."

Selene smiled a tad and then heard footsteps. "Quick, get out of here," she whispered, touching her hands to his and letting him climb down. "Please be careful…" she said, then watched him climb down before her mother walked into her room.

"Selene!" she yelled. "Get away from there!"

Selene's ears pinned back and she carefully went through her window and stepped into her bedroom. "I'm sorry, mother-"

"You know what I said about being on the roof," the mother hollered. "Go to bed, now!"

"I-I'm sorry…"


	3. Chapter 3 - Meeting

**Chapter 3**

The trembling fear shook through the silver hedgehog. She had to go to school again. She felt sick to her stomach as she got up from her bed, slipped on her clothes, and headed downstairs. Selene's day went by in a blur. Aurora, her sister, had approached the ghostly figure and looked down at her. "Selene, do you want to go dress shopping for prom with me? My friends are busy," she said, looking around as if someone was watching her. "I don't want to look lonely since mom's coming along too."

Selene knew that if she had shook her head in disagreement, her mother would probably scold her and Aurora would find a way to manipulate her into going anyway. "Okay," she said, then walked by her side.

"Mom's outside waiting," Aurora notified, then spun around. Her golden locks fluttered in the wind as she opened the door, and she smiled at her sister. "Do you have a date to prom-wait…never mind," Aurora stated in a disrespectful manner. She then just sat by herself and Selene turned to her side, watching the scenery. The car parked in a large garage area and the three hedgehogs got out, walking towards the mall. Selene crossed her arms in boredom but her eyes seemed interested. She looked at many of the dresses in curiosity but knew none of them would look good on her. That, and she couldn't show much interest since her date to prom was supposed to stay secret.

Selene sat down and watched her sister go into the changing rooms, her arms full of colorful dresses of all sorts of styles. One of the employees had approached her and asked if she was going to look for a dress, but Selene kindly declined.

After an hour wait Aurora found a dress that complimented her shape rather well. Selene gazed at her sister and smiled. "You look great," she said, but Aurora just brushed it off, like she usually would. Selene just looked down and kicked her feet up and stood, looking around and then she sighed. It was time to go home, another hour wasted, still a week left until prom.

 _Meet me in the forest behind your house._

"Huh?" Selene mumbled to herself. She was wondering off and then figured it was probably important. "It probably won't hurt to go out…"

* * *

Selene's alarm went off at midnight, and, like planned, she quickly slipped on a jacket that went over her silk night gown. She pulled on her trademark shoes and, being as quiet as a mouse, she sneaked out of her house. She felt nervous as a few of the panels in the wooden flooring were creaky, but after living there for a long time, she knew which ones to step on to avoid any sort of noise. The rococo-styled door too was as loud as ever, but Selene managed to barely pull it over, slip out, and run through her backyard. As she did, she focused on herself and felt her body levitate a bit, but it wasn't enough. She grabbed onto the edge of the pointy fence and pulled herself over in a slow matter to prevent herself from being scratched or any of that. She jumped down, landing on her feet and then ran forward.

Under the moonlight, a dark hedgehog stood, waiting for her. "Shadow!" Selene called out, then came to a stop right in front of him. "What did you call me out here for?" she asked in her usual, silent voice.

"Selene, I came to warn you about something," Shadow replied. "It's about…me." Selene fell silent and he avoided eye contact with her. "You clearly must not know who I am," he said.

Selene nodded in agreement. "I…really…don't…" she murmured, thinking it through.

"Do you pay attention in history?" Shadow questioned, turning around and facing away from the other hedgehog. "You may remember a character that had treaded this earth about 180 years ago, named Sonic." Shadow turned back around. "Sonic was a rival of mine."

"Wait…then how are you alive?" Selene asked in shock. She then scratched her head in confusion, raising an eyebrow.

"I…this conversation will be saved for later on," he said. "Right, onto Plan B. I brought you something." He walked over and pulled a box which was hidden in the grass. "Make sure no one finds this…" he warned. "I know you can't dance, so my second plan was to go ahead and teach you." Shadow moved over and next to the box Selene noticed a small speaker. A beautiful violin cover of one of Selene's favorite songs had come on.

Shadow hesitantly moved his hands to Selene's, and he guided her hands to his shoulders. From there he moved his hands down to Selene's hips, gazing down at her with his half-lidded crimson eyes and a rare smile appeared. "I hope you don't mind," he said, then began to guide her. "I feel more comfortable confronting you like this." He still avoided eye contact, keeping his eyes on the moon. "I'm an artificially created hedgehog, made by Gerald Robotnik. He inserted some of Black Doom's DNA into me – assuming that you had paid attention to history class," he laughed. "You'd know who Black Doom is.

Selene's ears went back and she shrugged, giggling nervously. "Sorry, I really do not care for that class…So you're famous? And worked with Sonic the hedgehog?"

"Basically," he laughed. The song came to an end and then he looked down at her, letting go of her. "I just want you to know that I'm immortal, and that you will age and I will never," he said, looking away and Selene could sense sorrow in his aura. "Look, sorry to open up this much to you, I really can't help it," he said, turning away.

"Shadow…" Selene murmured. "It's okay, really…" She moved a hand to the side of Shadow's cheek but Shadow pushed her hand away. "Shadow, please…" she politely demanded. "Please listen to me. I care about you no matter what."

Shadow looked back at her and then nodded. "Alright," he said. He then looked down. "In that box is your prom dress," he said. "I bought it for you, I hope you like the color choice."

Selene opened the box and then pulled out the dress. It was a long white dress with tiered layers made of bridal silk. "Oh Shadow, this is beautiful!" she exclaimed. She went over and pressed it against herself. "Thank you thank you thank you!" she squeaked, moving over and hugging him.

"Selene, listen. You will have to go to prom and change on the way there. Bring a few sets of clothes and all your money."

Selene gave him a strange glare. "Why?"

"We're going to run away. Just like how you wanted. It's no longer safe to stay at home, I'll explain more on our journey." Shadow looked around a bit, as if someone else was watching. "We're going to move to Selstice city. I have a mansion there," he whispered.

"O-okay," Selene said. She knew this was for the right reasons, after all. "Shadow…thank you…" she responded.

 _Protect her._

"Wh-what was that?" she asked.

 _Protect him._


	4. Chapter 4 - Nightmares

Chapter 4

Selene woke up the following day in confusion. She wasn't exactly sure what the previous night was about, with the voices that came to her mind and such. She rubbed her temples and slipped on her gloves, then changed into her normal outfit – a long-sleeved black shirt, and dark jeans. She headed downstairs, ate breakfast, and walked to school. First class was always history, and she knew that she had to pay attention now.

Selene opened the large book and flipped to the first page, reading it to herself.

 _Unit One: Sonic and Alliances_

 _Section one: Sonic and Tails_

 _In the year 2050, a blue hedgehog named Sonic roamed this earth. He was the fastest thing alive, as he could travel faster than the speed of light. With his trusty sidekick, Tails, the two fought for justice in Mobius. Tails would provide travel assistance in his airplane, while Sonic would speed through different lands in order to defeat Doctor Eggman._

 _Tails was a mechanical genius. He could repair robots, fix his plane, and was proved worthy to be Sonic's best sidekick. Sonic saw Tails as his little brother and took him under his wing. In return, Tails provided his skills in the robotics field which ultimately helped Sonic defeat Doctor Eggman in first place._

 _Section Two: Shadow and Sonic_

Selene froze as she read that, then looked at the picture at the side. Shadow looked the same – and it made Selene scoot around in her chair uncomfortably.

 _Shadow is an artificial life form created by Doctor Gerald Robotnik 50 years before Sonic was born. Known as "the Ultimate Lifeform", he can run as fast as Sonic and is immortal. Believed to still be alive today. Does not age._

 _Sonic and Shadow have been seen fighting through time to time. Because of this, it's rare to see the two get together to fight against the same enemy. The two instead do their work separately. Shadow is known to be anti-social but is still seen as an antihero to this day._

Selene closed the book and slipped it in her bag secretly. She then scurried to her next class. "But how can Shadow get over here if he's so well known?" she asked herself. "I guess celebrities need a break too, I guess," she wondered, then settled down for her next class. Her day went by and she felt a bit strange knowing that Shadow was such a well-known figure. She had not seen him at school at all and it made her worry. Did he want her to know that much about him?

 _The two hedgehogs stood underneath the moon, exchanging their vows._

"Huh?" Selene pondered. She had been receiving strange thoughts lately, such as _save her, protect her, protect him,_ and it was really out of the ordinary. Her thoughts always spoke louder than her own words so she began to draw down the image that had recently formed in her head. _Two hedgehogs._ Selene's pencil lightly sketched out exactly how she saw the silhouette of the unidentifiable hedgehog. She had long curly hair that reached to her hips. The other hedgehog had, from her angle, two spikes. "I wonder who they are…they're clearly not me nor Shadow…"

" _Goddess of the moon, heed my call," the spiked hedgehog called out. He put his hand on top of the smaller hedgehog's and lifted it in the air, so the moon and their hands were in line. "With the power of your care, I wish that you bring blessing upon our union!"_

Selene looked into her reflection of the window on the corner of her room and noticed something off. Her eyes were, instead of their normal dark blue hue, bright purple. It happened for only a moment before her eyes went back to their normal color and she gazed down. "Wh-what was that?" she asked herself. "A-am I sick?" she asked, then raised her hand. In surprise, the teacher looked over and pointed at Selene. "I-I'm not feeling well," she mumbled, "I think I'm going to go home."

* * *

Selene looked into her reflection in a puddle on the ground and stopped. "Why were my eyes glowing?" she asked, touching her temples and rubbing them in a circular motion. "What's wrong with me?" she questioned, then stepped into the puddle, distorting her image, and headed home.

The silver hedgehog kept asking herself numerous questions, inquiring about her sanity until she had bumped into the black and red hedgehog. "Sh-shadow!" she said in her normal ghostly voice. "Why aren't you at school?"

"Did I mention that I don't go to your school," he said plainly. "Sorry I had to lie to you but I knew you wouldn't treat me any better if I told you the truth when you were about to jump. Simply put it, I'm living in secret at the moment," Shadow mumbled.

Selene was going to ask the stereotypical question of 'Why did you lie to me?' but went against it as she figured that it was for her own safety. "I read up about you, and…it's true, isn't it?" Selene gazed into his crimson eyes and then pulled the history book out of her bag to show him.

Shadow reached forward and grabbed for it, reading his own section. "Pathetic," he growled, handing the book back to Selene. "All the bad stuff, of course, never anything good," he said. "I'm a monster. And that book makes me realize it," he said.

"Shadow, are you-"

"No, I'm not. I'm tired of being lied about. I'm tired of living here. I really just can't wait until Saturday so that we can both just…run…" he said, then moved forward and touched Selene's shoulders. "You're sure you want to come, correct?" he asked the gray hedgehog.

"Of course," Selene smiled. "Nothing would make me happier."

* * *

 _"I'm sorry mother…"_

 _"It's all your fault, you know."_

 _"Father, stop!"_

Selene woke up from the sudden scare and looked around nervously. "Wh-what was that? Why am I getting all these weird thoughts-"

 _The car turned over and the passenger seat got crushed._

Tears flowed down Selene's cheeks. "H-help me…" she said, holding onto her knees and beginning to rock back in forth, trying to comfort herself. "Shadow…"

 _Her heart stopped beating._

"Shadow!" she cried out once more, then felt an arm wrap around her shoulders. The window had opened and the dark figure had crawled through, now sitting next to her. "Shadow…" she murmured, looking over at him. "What if my parents come in?"

"I locked the door," Shadow noted, then looked down at her once more. "Selene, it'll be okay, I won't let that ever happen to you. I promise."

Selene looked up at Shadow and slowly fell asleep in his arms. _When I run away with you, will every night be like this? Where you come and comfort me if I cry, or even when I need a friend to support me? I think I could live like this forever, with you holding onto me, and we can be like this for eternity._


	5. Chapter 5 - Run Away

Chapter 5

Selene woke up and felt her body feel more alive than ever. It was prom night! She remembered how she would have to find a way to sneak onto the large aircraft where it was being hosted. Along with that, she had to bring her belongings. The gray hedgehog had packed all of her money in her small black bag, slipped her dress on underneath, and wore pants underneath the dress so she looked a little more casual. She would change out of this at a bathroom nearby the aircraft.

She had grabbed any last belongings she needed, looked at her bedroom one last time, and left. That would be the last time she'd ever be in there. She carefully slipped out of the house and headed towards the other side of town. She felt a bit of remorse but overall she was excited to leave her abusive family to live with Shadow.

She had changed out of her normal clothes, stuffing them in her black bag, and walked onto the aircraft nervously. She noticed her sister get on before her, and the hedgehog just hid behind a few more Mobians to conceal herself. As soon as she got on, she had observed her surroundings.

The aircraft was stylized as an old ship. There was a deck, and a few stories beneath. Most of the Mobians stayed on the top floor as it was beautiful to dance under the stars. Even a few daredevils had attempted to climb up the ropes, but were later scolded. Selene smiled at them and then remembered that this was going to possibly the last time she would see her sister. She took one last glance before heading over to see Shadow on the top deck waiting in a tuxedo. She smiled a bit, her cheeks turning pink as she moved over next to him. "It's pretty out tonight, is it not?" she asked him, her hands behind her back.

Shadow's crimson eyes flickered from the moonlight and he turned to face his counterpart. "I would have to agree." He took Selene's hands in his own and placed her hands on his shoulders, moving his hands down to her hips and looking down at the gray hedgehog. "We're going to run away together," he said. "There's still a chance to back out, if you want to, of course."

Selene shook her head. "I think I made up my mind back when you saved me."

The two stayed close together and the ship took off into the sky, moving closer to the stars now. Amazing how technology had made such an old ship have such new advances to be able to fly through the sky. A small wind picked up, shaking Shadow's quills a little bit. "Selene," he murmured. "I need you to do me a favor."

"And that is?" she asked, holding closer to him and smiling.

"We're going to jump," he said. "I need you with your best power to brace yourself for when we hit the ground. Using your telekinesis, you can brace the fall and we can survive it."

Selene began to panic. "Why are we jumping off? Why did we come here in first place?!"

Shadow had bit his lip and then looked away. "It's because…well…I wanted to see how beautiful you looked in that dress, and hold you while wearing it," he blushed darkly, avoiding eye contact. "Listen, I'm immortal, and you know that. We'll jump and you'll have to hold onto me. If you brace our landing, then we can get out quicker and it will result in safer and smoother runaway. Do you understand?"

"Shadow…" Selene blushed, then nodded in understanding. "I see," she said, then went over before she heard her name being called.

"Selene?"

Selene froze, the tuft of fur on her neck spiking up. Her eyes widened and she turned to see her sister standing there, her arms crossed and leaning onto the frame. "What are you doing here, Selene?" She walked forward, grabbing her arm and pulling her away from Shadow. "And who is your date?" she growled, looking over at the black and red hedgehog. "Selene, mother is worried sick about you!"

Selene backed away. "N-no…" she said. "I'm not letting you ruin this night," she said. "Shadow, it's time we go," she said, looking over at him and then noticing how he was carefully observing Aurora. "Shadow, come on," she demanded.

"What? Why are you spouting all this nonsense?" Aurora asked, then put her hands on her hips before reaching forward and grabbing onto Selene's arm, causing pain to shoot up Selene's body. "Why are you in so much pain?" she asked, feeling tears in the corner of her eyes.

"Sh-shadow, help me!" Selene said, trying to tug away from her sister.

The dark hedgehog walked forward and stopped in front of the yellow one. "Let her go, Aurora," he said.

"No."

"Looks like you're going to take this the hard way," he grunted, noticing a circle forming around the three hedgehogs. Shadow ran forward and grabbed onto Selene, watching Aurora let go of her. "Remember the plan," he whispered, backing away and moving closer to the edge. Aurora's face grew pale as he stepped on the edge. Selene thought long and focused her attention on the two, then felt her body levitate upward.

"Selene, no!" Aurora yelled, but it was too late. Shadow had jumped.

* * *

The two were falling towards the ground. Selene felt her body relax until an alarm in the distance went off. The city was so beautiful at this time of night, from what she could see below her. "Shadow, where how are we going to run away?" she asked as they kept falling.

"I parked my motorcycle near the dock. Let's try to land around there and we'll then be able drive away. They will be searching for us so we're going to be driving to Selstice City."

Selene slowly put the two from falling to a stop and then moved her feet and touched the ground. Adrenaline pumped through her veins and she and Shadow began to run as more alarms had gone off. The sky above was spotted with helicopters, searching the ground for any sign of the two. "We need to get out of here fast," she said, closing her eyes and holding onto Shadow's hand as he got onto the motorcycle. She felt him turn the gas on and sped off out of the city.


	6. Chapter 6 - Confession

Chapter 6

Selene had fallen asleep with her arms around Shadow's body. They had driven for a couple of hours now, and Shadow woke Selene up by stopping the motorcycle. Selene was rather drowsy, and she had jumped off the motorcycle and looked ahead. Beyond the large, tall gates, stood a mansion. The mansion's walls were spotted with ivy plants and the place needed some maintenance. "I haven't lived here in 50 years," Shadow murmured, touching Selene's hand and helping her get through the fence. "So the place might be falling apart and dusty. I'll be staying up all night to work on it, if you do not mind."

Shadow walked inside the Victorian-style mansion and Selene noticed how he was having memories flash by his eyes. "I-I don't remember too much," he said. "I suffer from Amnesia, so it's hard to remember what exactly I did here." He went to a closet and opened it up. "Here, these are some blankets. Take them and replace the dusty ones that are on there at the moment," he said. His crimson eyes flickered as he turned on one of the lights. He coughed a bit. "Sorry it's dusty in here," he said. "I'll work on it right away."

Selene, being tired as she was, grabbed her bag and settled down in her room. She closed the door behind her and changed into her night gown, then changed the dusty covers, bringing them out to Shadow, who then bought them down to the laundry room. Selene watched Shadow clean for a bit, but then grew tired and went to bed.

 _It's nice to start a new life. Especially with him. I really like him…but how do I confess?_

* * *

It was around 4 AM before Shadow finished cleaning. The sound of the door opening up woke up Selene, but she still pretended to be asleep so that she wouldn't guilt Shadow into believing that his loud, clumsy actions had awoken her. Shadow fell asleep next to her in the bed, and he reached over, touching Selene's arm and then pulling her next to his body, making Selene blush darkly. "Selene, I know you're awake," he murmured with a grumbly tone in his voice.

"Sorry," Selene whispered, then turned over to face him. Their faces were only inches apart now and Selene's cheeks were bright red.

"What are these?" Shadow asked, pulling up Selene's arm gently and showing scars all over them.

Selene pulled away. "Self-inflicted scars," she whispered in return. "I just…believed there was no hope for me, and I could release my anger and frustration upon myself." She bit her lower lip, hoping that Shadow would not judge her for this.

"Selene," he said. "Don't do it ever again." He then inched closer to her, feeling her breath on himself. "You're the most beautiful hedgehog I had ever met," he said. "Please don't ever change, whether it's for me or someone else. Just keep being you."

"Sh-Shadow…"

He ran a hand on her cheek and propped himself up on one arm, then leaned closer to her. "Everything will be okay. I promise. We're going to live here now," he said. "You're my best friend, and possibly one of the only friends I had ever had," he murmured.

"Same here," Selene mewed. She then felt his hands on her cheek and she blushed even more. "Shadow…what's going on?" she asked.

"I'm doing something I should have done ages ago," he said, then inched forward and pressed his lips against hers. Selene felt an explosion of emotions overtake her, and she closed her eyes and pressed forward, feeling their lips interlock. The two finally broke apart and Shadow gazed into Selene's eyes. "Sorry if you didn't want to do that," he said, looking away.

Selene moved forward and touched a hand to his fuzzy chest. It had spiked up as he had kissed her and she giggled, then she moved forward and pressed her lips against his again. She had never felt this good in her life, and she felt her legs entwine with his now. "Shadow….I love you too."

Shadow moved the blankets over the two of them and the two fell asleep in each other's arms.


End file.
